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Wednesday, November 12, 2014

I knew it. I knew from that first moment we saw their spaceship and we heard the dead-silence of space. I knew that this film would be inevitably compared to Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. And those comparisons aren't wrong. There are so many details from 2001 that Interstellar borrows and pays homage to. From the shape of the robot assistants, CASE and TARS, to the sheer depiction of space and the structure of the ships. Even the score by Hans Zimmer seems to relish back to the grandiose sounds of the 1968 film. None of this is bad. In fact it makes the film feel like something it is, an enhancement and furthering of those beautiful effects from 2001.

But Interstellar is something of its own. It is a film in many other respects that is so different from 2001. It focuses on the emotional struggles of a father launching into space and leaving his children and family behind. It focuses on the idea that love is something that cannot be measured, yet is the most quantifiable and beautiful things in the universe. It focuses on the idea of losing the ones you love because of the inescapable and terrifying effects of time. It brings a resiliency and strength back to the notion of believing in humanity and looking up to the stars in wonder.

In the realm of cinematography, the film is unmatched. The striking shots of entering a wormhole to the sheer awe that is inspired by the sight of a black hole, create an image of space that has never been seen before. The most fantastic part of this all is: it's all true. Due to help of physicist, Kyp Thorne, Nolan is able to conjure up images of scientifically correct phenomena and still make it look as beautiful as it should in a film. My eyes were transfixed in wonder as I gazed upon a wormhole (that wasn't a circle, but a sphere, as noted in the film), that looked so real I could touch it.

The narrative and script can get boggled down at times, but the overall story is another beautiful idea. An idea that humankind is not destined to stay on earth, but is destined to be pioneers and visionaries up in the stars. This film may very well have inspired a potential generation of physicists and astronauts into thinking about the world in a new perspective.

Matthew McConaughey and the rest of the cast do an exceptional job. Especially the young Mackenzie Foy, who plays the young Murph, daughter of Cooper (McCounaughey's character). It's truly a fantastically acted film.

This film is pure bliss. It's mentally challenging, but the reward you get at the end is worth every struggle.

Born out of an appreciation and understanding of films such as 2001, Interstellar manages to make a new footprint on not only the genre of science fiction, but films in general by taking complexity to an uncharted beauty not seen before. Interstellar, even with its far-reaching concepts, still is able to convey the simplest, yet the most powerful of human ideas, love.